National Taiwan University (NTU), which is to name a campus square after White Terror victim Chen Wen-chen (陳文成), is holding a competition to choose a design for the square.
The NTU Campus Planning Committee said that the 1,107m2 space, which will be called “Dr Chen Wen-chen Incident Memorial Square” (陳文成事件紀念廣場), is between the 1st Student Activity Center and the Department of Library and Information Science building, where the body of Chen, who was an NTU alumnus and a democracy activist, was found in 1981.
The naming of the square is aimed at increasing public awareness of Chen’s death and his contribution to Taiwan’s democratic development, the committee said.
Student representatives and teachers brought up the idea of establishing a memorial square on campus in 2013, which was approved by an university affairs meeting in 2014, said committee convener Huang Liling (黃麗玲), who is also an associate professor at the university’s Graduate Institute of Building and Planning.
The committee said it is calling for projects to redesign the space in a way that would attract students and the public to visit and learn more about Chen.
Participants can submit their designs between April 30 and May 30, the committee said, adding that the winning design would be given a NT$100,000 cash prize.
The name of the square and Chen’s accomplishments must be displayed in the square and its theme should express the spirit of “courage and freedom,” the committee said.
Committe member Wu Hsin-Yu (吳鑫餘) said that the White Rose Monument in front of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and the Jan Palach Square in Prague’s Old Town are examples of such squares, adding that the committee plans to create a public space that signifies the role the incident played in the development of Taiwan’s democracy.
NTU Student Council academic officer Weng Yu-lin (翁毓聆) said it will be the first democracy memorial square on campus and would also be a representation of transitional justice.
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Vancouver, Canada, on Saturday hosted a reception to celebrate Double Ten National Day. Conservative Canadian lawmaker Marc Dalton called Taiwan a “beacon of courage and resilience in the face of rising authoritarianism,” according to a post on the Taiwan in Vancouver Facebook page. Also in attendance were fellow conservative caucus members Tako Van Popta and Chak Au, who said that Taiwan plays an “indispensable role” in ensuring global peace, prosperity and stability due to its strategic position in the Indo-Pacific region, it said. Canadian lawmaker Michael Cooper also recorded a message wishing Taiwan a
RSS